9 May 2018
A Queensland radio show altering popular perceptions about planning, a renewable energy framework that promises to take the heat out of contentious wind-farm proposals in NSW, and ambitious projects to re-energise country towns in South Australia and Western Australia have received three of Australia’s top planning awards.
The Urban Squeeze Radio Show, broadcast on ABC Radio’s Gold Coast 91.7FM station, received the Cutting Edge Research and Teaching Award for helping broaden the public’s understanding and appreciation of planning practice.
The radio show boasts an audience of about 26,000 listeners per episode, with previous episodes available for down-loading on the internet. It has carved a reputation as a forum for shifting discussion of planning issues away from the parochial and reactive and more towards the considered and contextual.
Soon to enter its third season, the Urban Squeeze Radio Show was praised by Award judges for its innovative and informative approach to engaging with the community (and with planning scholars and practitioners) on the value of planning.
The Wind Energy Framework put together by the NSW team of Felicity Greenway, Meagan Kanaley, Kristy Chan and Rohan Tayler received the Improving Planning Processes and Practices Award, with judges citing it as “long-overdue” refinement.
Official assessments of renewable energy development proposals are frequently drawn-out and contentious, and Award judges said the new framework – developed in collaboration with the NSW Environmental Protection Agency – had the potential not only to settle proposals sooner but to improve processes nationwide.
In an outcome reflecting a top-quality field of nominations, PIA’s From Plan to Place Award was awarded twice: to a project that turned an unused rail corridor into a practical public space in Mount Gambier in SA, and to a project to revitalise the Central Business District of Collie, a coal-producing centre in WA’s south-west region.
More than 10 years in the making, the City of Mount Gambier Council’s Railway Lands project transformed a historic but disused community asset in the city centre into a multi-purpose public space using a range of planning techniques and a strongly collaborative approach.
The Award judges applauded the council’s desire to actively involve the public in the project’s planning and implementation – a process they said had helped create a popular space delivering a range of economic, social, and environmental benefits.
The Collie CBD Revitalisation project was inspired by the local community’s desire to change perceptions of their town as a declining industrial centre with poor services and amenity.
To help build a more active and vibrant town centre – and to generate confidence in the town’s future – the project team worked to create a strong sense of community ownership and connection to the areas where they live, work, and recreate.
Judges said the project’s positive and lasting impact on the social cohesion, civic pride, social interaction, and identity of Collie made it a worthy award-winner.
Elizabeth Quay – a project overseen by the Metropolitan Redevelopment Authority – took out the Great Place Award.
Located on the north shore of Perth water, close to the Central Business District, the Elizabeth Quay mixed-used development project is the centrepiece of the WA State Government’s plan to extend the CBD to the river as well as re-orient the city on a new north-south axis.
Award judges praised the project team’s efforts to unlock the potential of a significant area of riverfront land, saying they had created a world-class landmark waterfront destination.
PIA’s Outstanding Student Project Award went to Ella Rushworth for a project looking at the role of land-use planning in the uptake of urban agriculture in Hobart.
Increased densification in Australia’s cities has led to a renewed Interest in urban agriculture, and Award judges praised Ms Rushworth’s research for its relevance and applicability to towns and cities other than Hobart.
PIA’s National Planning Awards recognise leading practice, leadership and achievement in planning and the planning profession, and are spread across 12 different categories.
ENDS